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Police organisation

Uganda Police Force

Uganda’s national police force, constitutionally mandated under the 1995 Constitution and tracing its formation to the Uganda Armed Constabulary of 1899.

Fact-checkedLast updated

At a glance

Official name
Uganda Police Force
System
Uganda
Level of government
National
Kind of body
National police force
Status
Currently operating
Official website
https://upf.go.ug/ — confirmed against the organisation’s own pages on 17 September 2026.
Facts last checked against sources
17 September 2026

What it is

The force describes itself as constitutionally mandated under the 1995 Constitution, with the tasks of protecting life and property, preserving law and order, preventing and detecting crime, and maintaining internal security. It publishes its own account of its origins: formation as the Uganda Armed Constabulary in 1899, reorganisation as the Uganda Protectorate Police in 1906, and a passage from colonial instrument to national institution. A force that publishes that account of itself is describing a change in what it is for, not only in what it is called.

What it covers

The whole territory of Uganda.

Broad responsibilities

  • Protecting life and property
  • Preserving law and order
  • Preventing and detecting crime
  • Maintaining internal security

Who it answers to

The force states its constitutional mandate under the 1995 Constitution. The page read does not name a supervising ministry, and none is claimed.

Elsewhere on this site

Where this connects

Institutions: National police.

Sources

  1. History of the Uganda Police Force — Uganda Police Force

    Uganda Police Force · Institutional (self-description) · link verified 2026-09-17

    SCOPE: the Uganda Police Force only. The force's own history page, read directly. Supports the official name, its own statement of vision and mission, its formation as the Uganda Armed Constabulary in 1899 and reorganisation as the Uganda Protectorate Police in 1906, and its description of itself as constitutionally mandated under the 1995 Constitution with the tasks of protecting life and property, preserving law and order, preventing and detecting crime, and maintaining internal security. The Constitution itself was NOT fetched; the constitutional description rests on the force's own account.